SHRM India has unveiled its research report titled Driving Enterprise Productivity with Agentic AI, developed in partnership with Google Cloud and Quantiphi. This report was presented at the SHRM India Annual Conference and Expo 2025, The Festival of Work, hosted at the Taj Palace in New Delhi. Celebrating two decades of SHRM India, this conference attracted over 4,500 HR professionals, 150 speakers, and featured 70 sessions that revolved around work, leadership, and trends within the workforce.
Based on contributions from 58 HR leaders spanning 14 industries and interviews with CHROs from 11 organisations, including Flipkart, Mahindra and Mahindra, and Larsen and Toubro, the research explores how Indian enterprises can effectively plan for and integrate agentic AI into their operations.
The findings reveal that while 79% of CHROs rank the adoption of agentic AI as an urgent priority, only half feel their organisations are sufficiently prepared to implement it. This discrepancy in readiness underscores the importance of developing targeted strategies focusing on upskilling, governance, and alignment within the organisation.
To address this readiness gap, the research offers actionable recommendations such as establishing centres of excellence, constructing a robust data foundation, investing in AI literacy, and integrating ethical frameworks into AI usage.
Achal Khanna, CEO of SHRM APAC and MENA, commented that The Festival of Work represents a celebration of people, purpose, and possibilities. This research provides HR leaders with valuable insights and tools necessary for the responsible and strategic utilisation of AI, reshaping the future of work in India and beyond.
SHRM India is committed to enabling organisations to enhance HR practices and unlock human potential. As the Indian arm of the world’s largest HR association, it merges global standards with local insights through consulting, corporate training, professional certification, and major events like the SHRM India Annual Conference and Expo and the SHRM TECH Conference and Expo.